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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 4/29/2005

Mt. Horeb – Members of the Dane County Tree Board and fifth grade students from Mt. Horeb Intermediate Center will join Friday to celebrate Arbor Day at Stewart County Park. Tree Board members will assist students planting trees and conduct educational activities about the different recreational and functional uses of trees.

The Tree Board will give students a copy of the newly-released “Wisconsin’s Champion Trees”, a book written by Tree Board member Bruce Allison and funded by Dane County, Madison Gas and Electric Foundation, Inc., Alliant Energy, We Energies, the Hooper Foundation and Terry Monson.

“What better way to celebrate Arbor Day than with the release of ‘Wisconsin’s Champion Trees’,” said Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk. “Thanks to the work of Bruce Allison, and the generosity of sponsors, tree lovers everywhere can enjoy this fabulous book as both a resource and learning tool.”

Arbor Day (April 29, 2005) recognizes trees as one of our greatest resources. Trees are a renewable resources that not only provide shade for our homes and businesses, helping us save energy and lower energy costs, but also support our local and state economy by increasing property values and creating thousands of jobs in the green industry and in the production of paper and building products.

The Dane County Tree Board consists of seven volunteers, appointed by the County Executive, to help promote proper tree management, education and forestry issues. “Trees are a part of our everyday lives, whether we are reading a book, writing a letter, or eating and walking on our lunch breaks, we all enjoy the comfort and beauty of trees,” said Jeff Gorman, Dane County Tree Board Chair. “The Tree Board is at work in our local communities assisting with local natural resource programs, initiatives and producing ‘how to’ information for property owners on proper tree maintenance and tree problems.”

The Tree Board operates with the generous support of individual and business sponsors. To find out more, visit the Tree Board website at http://www.co.dane.wi.us/treeboard/treeboard.htm.